Station Crew Prepares for New Arrivals, Does Science

(NASA) – The Expedition 20 crew members aboard the orbiting International Space Station completed a busy work week Friday as they continued making preparations for future arrivals and worked with various scientific experiments.

Flight Engineer Tim Kopra removed racks in the Destiny laboratory in advance of the arrival of the STS-128 crew who will bring new ones to the orbital outpost aboard space shuttle Discovery later this month.

Expedition 20 Flight Engineer Frank De Winne works with the Combustion Integrated Rack in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. Image Credit: NASA

Earlier in the week, Kopra configured spacesuits and tools and filmed a tour of the Quest airlock to help prepare the STS-128 spacewalkers for the three scheduled spacewalks on the upcoming mission.

Flight engineers Mike Barratt, Bob Thirsk and Frank De Winne continued their week-long training for the capture and berthing of Japan’s new H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) prior to its launch and arrival to the station next month. Canadarm2, the station’s robotic arm, will be used to grapple the cargo-carrying HTV then attach it to the Harmony Node’s Earth-facing berthing mechanism.

Work involving an array of scientific experiments also took place aboard the station Friday. Kopra spent time with the 3D Space experiment, which involves distance, writing and illusion exercises and is designed to test the hypothesis that altered visual perception affects motor control.

Barratt worked with the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Emulsions 2 (InSPACE-2) experiment that studies fluids that can be used to improve or develop new brake systems and robotics.

Protective covers on the Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) in the Destiny laboratory were replaced by De Winne. The CIR includes an optics bench, combustion chamber, fuel and oxidizer control, and five different cameras for performing combustion experiments in microgravity.

Over the weekend the crew members will continue their regular science, maintenance and exercise activities. They also will enjoy some off-duty time and have an opportunity to speak with family members.